Land Trust Receives Nearly 16-Acre Gift

A view from the bottom of the 15.93-acre parcel off Pleasant Street in Rockville which promises to offer a hardy climb, but also some spectacular views from the top.

A view from the bottom of the 15.93-acre parcel off Pleasant Street in Rockville which promises to offer a hardy climb, but also some spectacular views from the top. (Annie Gentile/Special to Courant)

Annie GentileCourant Community

The Manchester Land Conservation Trust received a gift in December of 15.93 acres of forestland, in the Rockville section of Vernon.

The parcel, which is accessible from the eastern end of Pleasant Street, was donated by local developers Richard Lee and Stephen Lamont, and brings the land trust's total acreage to just over 450 acres, in six east-of-the-river towns.

"We're very pleased to have gotten the gift," said MLCT President Malcolm Barlow. "This area in Rockville is enjoying a resurgence, and we anticipate that when the property is cleaned up and trails are established, it will become very popular."

Barlow said the property abuts several open properties. The north end, he said, is owned by a neighbor with about five acres of open woodlands. The trust parcel itself once included a water tower, and it has a stream at the far end, where it dips low and flows into a small pond.

"It's really very pretty. We think it's going to be a jewel," said Barlow.

As with all MLCT land, their properties are open to the public for passive recreation, such as hiking, the goal to keep the property undeveloped into perpetuity.

Interestingly, Barlow said the parcel was not first offered to the MLCT, but to the Northern Connecticut Land Trust, which manages several properties, typically in more rural areas.

"When they decided not to accept the parcel, we were offered it second and took it unanimously," said Barlow. "We have something of a different view of open land spaces. Many land trust properties are made up of huge amounts of acreage, but the MLCT is located in a big built up town, so when we can find 15-plus acres of woodlands in our area, we think that's huge. We have the attitude that green spaces in developed areas are precious."

According to historian S. Ardis Abbott, author of "Building the Loom City, which traces the evolution of Rockville's mills during the better part of the 19th century, the property was owned by Maine native John N. Stickney, who, with his wife, the former Mary Hale, settled in Rockville in 1846, building their home on the south side of Pleasant Street in a home known as Evening Side.

Stickney's father-in-law, David Hale, was an early editor of the New York Journal of Commerce, and Stickney managed one of two paper mills owned by Hale, on which the newspaper was published. He also opened a store. After Hale's death, Stickney inherited the two mills, along with 82 acres of land, which encompasses the MLCT property. Abbott wrote that from his veranda on Pleasant Street, Stickney enjoyed surveying his two paper mills at the foot of the hill.

The land trust does not yet have a formal name for the property, and they are inviting the public to help them in that endeavor. Two possibilities have been floated - Pleasant Hill Preserve and Stickney Hill Preserve.

"We're hoping the public will send us some votes or provide us with some other ideas," said Barlow.

Barlow said there is a lot of work to be done on the property to remove debris and fallen trees, but if volunteer efforts go well, they hope to hold a hike by the end of spring. Still, he said, hikers may need to be hardy, as the parcel is quite steep.

As a footnote, Barlow said the land trust has received only one complaint about its taking on the property - that by doing so, it is taking it off the tax rolls, and he has a ready answer for that.

"A lot of studies have been done over the years and it has been found that towns with more preserved open spaces tend to have more tax revenue," she said. "Properties that border a park have higher property values, because people want to live near where there is greenery and recreation sources. As a result, housing prices go up, and it ends up having a reverse effect."

Barlow added that open space does not require the level of town services that would be needed if people lived on the property.

"Open space enhances the health of a community and the quality of life," he said.